Asbjoern Andersen


Danish director Christian Tafdrup’s disturbing film Speak No Evil – which premiered in the Sundance 2022 Midnight category – tells the tale of a mild-mannered Danish family who visits an offbeat Dutch family they had recently met on vacation. The houseguests' stay turns from friendly to frightening, with an ending that's dubbed 'shocking' by Sundance audiences. Here, sound designer/re-recording mixer Marco Vermaas talks about building intensity through the film's soundscape and what it was like to sound design that vivid ending.
Interview by Jennifer Walden, photos courtesy of Sundance Institute
Please share:
SoundMorph Halloween Sale 2025

Fans of horror should keep an eye out for Speak No Evil from director Christian Tafdrup. It recently premiered at Sundance 2022 in the Midnight category, and was picked up by AMC’s premium streaming service Shudder.

Like Ari Aster’s Midsommar, Tafdrup’s Speak No Evil explores the extremes of being too accepting of social differences to deadly effect. In Speak No Evil, a polite Danish family meets an affable Dutch family while on vacation. They hit it off, so when the Dutch family invites the Danish family over for a stay, they accept. But the situation spirals from welcoming to what the f**k, with an ending that makes a lasting impression on viewers.

Here, award-winning sound designer/re-recording mixer Marco Vermaas in Amsterdam talks about working with Tafdrup to create an unsettling undertone that sets the stage for the final horrifying act, finding the appropriate noises for Abel (who was born without a tongue), building off-screen events through sound, and more!



SPEAK NO EVIL Trailer (2022) Psychological Horror


SPEAK NO EVIL Trailer (2022) Psychological Horror

 

What were director Christian Tafdrup’s initial ideas for how to use sound as a storytelling tool in Speak No Evil? After reading the script, what were some of your initial ideas for sound on this film?

SpeakNoEvil_sound-01

Sound designer/re-recording mixer Marco Vermaas

Marco Vermaas (MV): After reading the script and talking to Christian it became clear that the film needed an undertone of something unsettling. In scenes that seemed ‘normal,’ we tried to come up with ideas to undermine or offset this normality so the audience would get a slightly unpleasant feeling.

As the film would progress on its journey to the underworld, the sound would become stronger and more dynamic, more like a horror soundtrack.

 

This film seems like a gradual arc from ‘normal’ into ‘madness.’ In terms of sound, how did you support this? How do you use sound to help emphasize that the situation is becoming more perilous for the house guests?

SpeakNoEvil_sound-02

Director Christian Tafdrup

MV: After picture-lock, this idea of the slow progression was still there, but Christian and editor Nicolaj Monberg decided that the film needed some very strong unsettling music cues right from the start, and throughout the film. This was picked up very well by composer Sune Kølster, and resulted in a much stronger unsettling feeling from the very start of the film.

In sound, we responded with stronger, more pronounced sound design. The nature and city ambiances became denser, the sound effects more pronounced. This worked very well. And within this new idea, we started looking for possibilities to create more dynamics to follow the drama. We tried to make the Italian tourist village sound as normal and happy as possible, and then later, when sleepless Bjørn is standing on his balcony in the silent night, we made the night crickets increasingly dense and loud.

It became an interesting process of give-and-take between music and sound design, where sometimes sound design would assume the role of music score, and the other way around. Some moments where music completely takes over and all sound is absent in an unexpected way, still strike me as the strongest in the film.

 

SpeakNoEvil_sound-03

What was your approach to the gore in Speak No Evil? Is it over-the-top? Or more subdued? What did you feel was most impactful for this film?

MV: Towards the end of the film, all normality is overtaken by more grotesque scenes and there we used more grotesque sound effects, of course. We said goodbye to reality and approached it more as an opera. Patrick’s car sounds huge and dangerous, the nature ambience can drop to dead silence, and the violence is super loud.

There’s one horrific scene that actually took me a while before I was able to watch it in a professional way and study the possibilities for sound.

There’s one horrific scene that actually took me a while before I was able to watch it in a professional way and study the possibilities for sound. And even in this scene, the gore is quite minimalistic and short. What is much more important is the idea of what is happening – and the screaming. We did put a lot of effort into getting the screaming right; those were intense ADR sessions.
 

[tweet_box]Sundance: Sound Designing Social Horror ‘Speak No Evil'[/tweet_box]

SpeakNoEvil_sound-04

What was your favorite scene in terms of sound design? What was the most fun for you to build?

MV: There’s this very long scene in the night when Bjørn slowly discovers the truth. Many actions are taking place off-screen, so it becomes kind of a radio-play that we – together with Bjørn – are listening to. That is a very Coen-Brothers-like approach, where the story is told through sound only. This is very hard but also very nice and rewarding to work on as a sound designer.

 

SpeakNoEvil_sound-06

What was the most challenging aspect for sound in the film?

MV: The sound of the boy-without-a-tongue was very hard to get right. After the scene where he shows his wide-open mouth to Bjørn, he is disturbing the cozy get-together of the grownups by loudly moaning from his bed. This moaning sound, which should sound weird and unsettling but also sound like a boy, took a long time to get right. We had many children and women in the studio, all doing their best version of this moaning. Actually, the sound of the boy that ended up in the film is, from scene to scene, from different actors.

 

SpeakNoEvil_sound-07

In terms of sound, what stands out for you in Speak No Evil?

MV: I think the use of music, as it was conceived in the picture edit, is one of the strongest assets of this film. Composer Sune Kølster was very nice to work with. Together with Christian, we decided up to the final mix what cues we would use and which we would remove to let the sound design do its work. This is the best a sound designer and re-recording mixer can wish for.
 

A big thanks to Marco Vermaas for giving us a behind-the-scenes look at the sound of Speak No Evil and to Jennifer Walden for the interview!

 

Please share this:


 



 
 
THE WORLD’S EASIEST WAY TO GET INDEPENDENT SOUND EFFECTS:
 
A Sound Effect gives you easy access to an absolutely huge sound effects catalog from a myriad of independent sound creators, all covered by one license agreement - a few highlights:

  • Introducing MOTION GRAPHICS, a complete Motion Graphics sound effects library from SoundMorph!

    Motion Graphics focuses on all the elements you might need for sound design on a trailer, a cinematic scene or a visual that is heavy with motion graphics, whether it be abstract or straight forward, Motion Graphics has all the elements and textures you could think of. Motion Graphics are something all of us sound designers run into at one point or another, so this library is an excellent addition to your sound effects tool box.

    Motion Graphics was created by and in collaboration with sound designer Rostislav Trifonov (SoundMorph Elemental library contributor).

    Motion Graphics features 650 24bit/96 kHz .wav files, all meticulously embedded with Soundminer & Basehead metadata.

    The library features:

    • 450 + designed sound effects
    • 190 + source audio files
    • Whooshes
    • Impacts
    • Risers
    • Stingers
    • Low end and Sub Bass
    • Impulse Responses
    • Passbys
    • Textures – noise, grit, glitch
    • Ambiences
    • Buttons and Clicks
    • Mechanical Elements
    • Granular effects
    91 %
    OFF
  • Bloody Nightmare is a modern horror cinematic library aimed at the most cutting edge bone chilling productions out there.

    Whether you work in sound design, as a composer, trailer editor or as an electronic musician, Bloody Nightmare is a valuable new wave of Horror sounds that will surely cause visceral moments of terror and dread!

    91 %
    OFF
  • ⏰ For a very limited time:
    Add this library to the cart and enter ah4launch in the cart coupon field – to sprinkle an extra launch discount, on top of the current discount!

    Animal Hyperrealism Vol IV is a sound library containing animal vocalisations, from real to designed creatures totaling more than 2000 individual sounds in 294 files. The sounds were recorded in zoos, and wildlife centers.

    The asset list includes but is not limited to: hippos, hyenas, vultures, dwarf mongooses, elephants, African cranes, parrots, tigers, pigmy hippos, rhea ostriches, brown bears, pheasants, wildebeests, African wild dogs and many more. The content has been recorded at 192KHz with a Sanken CO100K, an Avisoft CMPA and a Sennheiser 8050 for center plus two Sennheiser MKH8040 for stereo image.

    The resulting ultrasonic spectrum is rich and allows for truly extreme manipulation of the content.

    15 %
    OFF
Explore the full, unique collection here

Latest sound effects libraries:
 
  • A collection of 135 potion sound effects.

  • A collection of 140 individual power up ability sound effects.

  • A collection of 103 bowling sound effects.

  • São Miguel – Flows (supporter pack) is a collection that includes 14 looped files.
    The palette explores the sounds of the ocean, waterfalls, and hot springs. These recordings were captured in Moihnos (Cascata do Limbo, Praia dos Moihnos), Ribeira dos Caldeirões, Ponta do Arnel, and Furnas (Caldeira).
    Recorded in 96 kHz/24 bit, these sounds are easy to navigate and were captured using a Sony PCM D100.

  • ATTENTION: The audio preview only simulates gameplay to demo just a portion of the library’s content.


    Reward your players with the jackpot of 340 high-quality (170 original sounds), easy to use audio files that provide you with all the sports-themed audio your games will ever need!

    Create a casino masterpiece and a true immersion in your slots with this one-of-a-kind collection of royalty free sounds and music, expertly handcrafted to be a perfect fit for your games.

     

    ALL SLOT GAME ELEMENTS YOU WILL EVER NEED

    With numerous INTERFACE SOUNDS, such as REEL SPIN START BUTTONs, REEL SPINNING noises, REEL STOPs, BET INCREASE and DECREASE sounds, and all other interface buttons and TRANSITIONS, as well as WIN PAYOUT SOUNDs, such as short WIN TUNES, MUSICAL PAYOUT ROLLUP COUNTERs, SELECT and REVEAL jingles, various SYMBOL sounds, and FREE GAMES / FEATURE MUSIC LOOPs to fit any scene or situation (from strip-back relaxing background to upbeat catchy themes), this library is a perfect choice for your Online Video Slot, Mobile or even Land-based Casino Games!

     

    SPORTS-THEMED SOUNDS FOR YOUR FEATURE GAMES

    Need BASKETBALL game sounds, SOCCER / FOOTBALL, HOCKEY, BASEBALL, GOLF, TENNIS, TABLE TENNIS / PING PONG, SKIING / BOBSLED, SWIMMING or WATERPOLO, BOXING and even more? We got you covered!

    With all essential action and foley sounds for most common Oympic Sports that have been included in this pack, along with ambiences and miscellaneous sounds – such as AIR HORNS, ARENA AMBIENCES, CROWD CHEERING and CHANTING, JUDGE WHISTLE, and more – this sound effects library will leave nothing to be desired!

     

    ENGAGING SPORTS MUSIC IN ALL GENRES

    Immerse your players in gaming experience like no other with almost every music genre commonly found in sport events, games and tv program. We have also included multiple variations and edits to make your workflow as fast and easy as posible.

    From INDIE ROCK, HARD ROCK and METAL, to multiple sub-genres of ELECTRONIC Music, FUNK, ROCK BLUES and other genres, from SHORT STINGS, JINGLES and DROPS, to LOOPS, music mixes in VARIOUS INTENSITIES, included content here is a must have in your audio collection.

     

    With each audio file being drag-and-drop ready, presented in high quality MP3 and WAV formats with meticulously labelled keywords for your convienience, you will create the perfect gaming experience for your players in a matter of moments!


    So STEP UP YOUR SLOTS, GRAB ATTENTION and BUILD CONNECTION with YOUR PLAYERS! 

    DOWNLOAD NOW!


    SPORTS SLOTS at a Glance:

    • Symbol Sounds, Buttons and other Interface Sounds, Reel Spin and Stops, Trigger Sounds, Selection and Reveal sound effects, Music Loops for every scene and situation, Win Tunes and Rollups, Payouts and other short Celebration Tunes + much more!
    • Sports-Themed Feature Sounds: Basketball, Soccer / Football, Hockey, Baseball, Golf, Tennis, Table Tennis / Ping Pong, Skiing / Bobsled, Swimming, Waterpolo, Boxing and more
    • Numerous Variations and Edits of the assets, such as multiple lengths, intensities, looping and non-looping variants, and more;
    • Ready to use – requires no editing, labelling or splicing. Categorized, organized and individually labeled files for maximum use efficiency;
    • FREE Updates to higher versions, FOREVER!

    Enrich your slot IP in seconds with beautifully mixed, AAA quality sounds brought to you by our team of industry veterans, whose 1000+ slot games worth of experience have culminated in this extraordinary sound pack!



    DON’T DELAY any longer, you are only a step away from bringing your game to life. Take action and DOWNLOAD NOW!

    10 %
    OFF

   

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

HTML tags are not allowed.